ArticleReproductive health2019
Medical abortion in Nepal: a qualitative study on women's experiences at safe abortion services and pharmacies.
Article in Reproductive health, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers.
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Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed.
- Two decades of safe abortion policy evolution and reform in Nepal (2002-2025): progress, implementation, challenges, and opportunities.Archives of public health = Archives belges de sante publique · 2026Article
- "You can do this at home and people won't find out": a qualitative exploration of women's experiences with the use of medication abortion drugs received directly from pharmacies in Nepal.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Exploring pharmacy provision of medication abortion pills in Nepal: a mixed-methods study of pharmacy workers' knowledge and practices.Sexual and reproductive health matters · 2025Article
- Striving toward safe abortion services in Nepal: A review of barriers and facilitators.Health science reports · 2024Article
- Impact of Sumadhur intervention on fertility and family planning decision-making norms: a mixed methods study.Reproductive health · 2023Article
- Parental knowledge and communication with their adolescent on sexual and reproductive health issues in Nepal.PloS one · 2023Article
- Abortion decision-making process trajectories and determinants in low- and middle-income countries: A mixed-methods systematic review and meta-analysis.EClinicalMedicine · 2022Article
- Contraceptive Use Before and After Abortion: A Cross-Sectional Study from Nigeria and Côte d'Ivoire.Studies in family planning · 2022Article
- Medical abortion drug dispensing practices among private pharmacy workers in Nepal: A mystery client study.PloS one · 2022Article
- Medical abortion kit dispensing practices of community pharmacies in Pokhara Metropolitan, Nepal.PloS one · 2021Article
- Foreign ideology vs. national priority: impacts of the US Global Gag Rule on Nepal's sexual and reproductive healthcare system.Sexual and reproductive health matters · 2020Article
- Safe Abortion among Underprivileged Group Married Women of Low Resource Country: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study.JNMA; journal of the Nepal Medical Association · 2020Article
- Factors associated with unsafe abortion practices in Nepal: Pooled analysis of the 2011 and 2016 Nepal Demographic and Health Surveys.PloS one · 2019Article
- Lived experience of unsafe abortion among commercial sex workers in Gedeo Zone, Southern Ethiopia: A phenomenological qualitative study.Women's health (London, England)Article
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
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No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAlthough Nepal legalised abortion in 2002, a significant number of women continue to access unsafe abortions. An estimated 60% of all abortions performed in 2014 were unsafe, with unsafe abortion continuing to be a leading contributor to maternal mortality. Despite medical abortion access being solely permitted through government accredited safe abortion services, medical abortion pills are readily available for illegal purchase at pharmacies throughout the country.
methodsUtilising an Assets Focused Rapid Participatory Appraisal (AFRPA) research methodology, underpinned by a health information pyramid conceptual framework, this qualitative exploratory study collected data from in-depth, open-ended interviews. The study explored the medical abortion and sexual and reproductive health experiences of ten women who accessed medical abortion through an accredited safe abortion service, and ten women who accessed unsafe medical abortion through pharmacies.
resultsThematic content analysis revealed emerging themes relating to decision-making processes in accessing safe or unsafe medical abortion; knowledge of safe abortion services; and SRH information access and post-abortion contraceptive counselling. Findings emphasised the interconnectivity of sexual and reproductive health and rights; reproductive coercion; education; poverty; spousal separation; and women's personal, social and economic empowerment.
conclusionsWhile barriers to safe abortion services persist, so will the continued demand for medical abortion provision through pharmacies. Innovated and effective harm reduction implementations combined with access and information expansion strategies offer the potential to increase access to safe medical abortion while decreasing adverse health outcomes for women.
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